Law Clerk Program

The Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia adopted the Circuit Judge Law Clerk Program in 1997. Each law clerk might have a broad spectrum of duties to perform, as every judge has specific legal and administrative support that they require of their law clerk.

The Administrative Office recruits applicants year-round to screen for the creation of the pool of qualified candidates from which the circuit judges will make their hiring decisions. Law clerks can be hired directly by the circuit judge from either the pool of qualified candidates screened by the Administrative Office or from outside the pool, provided that the candidate is first approved by the Administrative Office.

The Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia announces that
it is accepting applications for full-time law clerks for the circuit judges in West
Virginia, as follows:

As new vacancies arise or as vacant positions are filled, this Job Announcement will be modified and, thus, should be monitored by interested applicants.
The annual salary for those who are not members of the West Virginia State Bar is $46,416.00, plus benefits, and the annual salary for those who are members of the West Virginia State Bar is $55,008, plus benefits. Documentation from the West Virginia State Bar, i.e., Bar Dues Statement, will be required to receive the higher salary. The West Virginia Judicial System is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to providing equal access and unbiased, non-discriminatory treatment to all.

All circuit judge law clerks must sit for the West Virginia Bar
Examination each time it is offered. The failure to pass the West Virginia
Bar Examination within two (2) attempts will result in a
loss of employment. West Virginia Bar
Examination failures predating judicial employment count toward the two (2) attempts.
Any person who has failed the West Virginia Bar
Examination, or any bar examination, two or more times is ineligible
for these positions. Once a person passes the West Virginia Bar Examination,
the issue of bar examination failures is moot.

The minimum
g.p.a. for these positions is 2.2.Candidates
being considered for employment will be subject to a criminal background check.

To be considered for the pool of qualified candidates from which the circuit judges will select the successful applicants, please submit
a completed West
Virginia Judiciary Application for Employment(page
3 of which must be notarized), along with
a letter of interest that reflects the specific positions in which you are
interested and all state bar memberships. If you are not a member of the
West Virginia State Bar, please list the West Virginia Bar
Examinations you have taken. Include with your letter of interest copies of your
résumé, law school transcript, and writing sample equal
of the number of positions for which you want to be considered [plus one additional copy of your
résumé and writing
sample and one Official Copy of your law school transcript to be retained by this Court] to:

The West Virginia Judicial System is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to providing equal access and unbiased, non-discriminatory treatment to all.
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